LAS VEGAS – Rafael Espinoza eased to the third defense of his WBO featherweight title when he stopped the durable Edward Vazquez in seven rounds at the T-Mobile Arena.

On the occasion of Cinco de Mayo weekend the Mexican imposed his significant advantage in height and reach from the opening bell, and remained calculated while gradually breaking Vazquez down until forcing the referee Harvey Dock’s intervention.

Vazquez, 29, had absorbed significant punishment until the conclusion came after one minute and 47 seconds of the seventh round, and to the extent that there were times he had impressed in remaining upright.

The stoppage had been threatened as early as the fourth, when the 31-year-old Espinoza responded to Vazquez’s aggression with a display of power of his own. He responded similarly to further aggression in the fifth, but with even more spite, and thereafter dictated the tempo against his increasingly tiring challenger before Dock showed sound judgement to intervene.

Espinoza’s considerable size advantage proved influential during the opening round, and yet in Vazquez, who had previously only recorded decision defeats by Joe Cordina and Raymond Ford – and neither were unanimous – he had been matched with an opponent against which a convincing victory would represent a show of intent. 

The size difference that existed made it immediately transparent that Vazquez would quickly tire, and while he sought to evade Espinoza’s jab when the Mexican boxed on the back foot, he soon also had to contend with the right uppercuts Espinoza consistently sought to land.

It was in the first round when after being hit with successive right uppercuts and a further right hand to the chin Vazquez leapt with a left hand and fell short and may already have become disheartened, even if it didn’t show. He responded by more successfully landing a left to the body – targeting Espinoza’s body represented the wisest approach – and followed it up there with a jab.

Espinoza first held his feet in the second, when landing a left uppercut and then a left to the body. Vazquez capitalised by landing again to his lean torso, and was soon punished by another right uppercut.

Vazquez started the third with more conviction, via a right to the body and a left-right to the head. Espinoza, in turn, responded by letting his hands go, but took another left to the body that again forced him on the back foot. Successive rights to the body, then a left uppercut to the body and a perfectly timed right-uppercut to the head followed from the champion, contributing to Vazquez’s form becoming more ragged and the challenger again being backed up.

The American’s strongest spell came towards the start of the fourth round, when he succeeded to both head and body and fought at his desired range. Perhaps inevitably he fell short with a right and left hand while he retained a sense of momentum, but he then snapped Espinoza’s head back with a left hand and caught him with two others before Espinoza landed a combination that backed him up, ending his positive spell and the start of the period in which Espinoza consistently dictated and eventually broke him down.

Before the round had concluded Espinoza had backed Vazquez up towards the ropes, where the challenger desperately and narrowly attempted to resist being knocked down and was forced to accept that what was on course to be his strongest round had become his worst. 

Vazquez thereafter resisted attempting to be the aggressor. A well-timed left uppercut backed him up once again in the fifth, and when he was trapped towards the ropes Espinoza again let his hands go and left Vazquez struggling to remain on his feet.

Aware of Vazquez’s exhaustion, the composed Espinoza fought at a reduced pace in the sixth round but continued to weaken his challenger, who again fell short with successive straight left hands.

When Vazquez’s head was rocked back by another uppercut in the seventh the end was nearing. Further lefts to the body and rights to the body and head put Vazquez under even more pressure, and while he was trapped in his corner Dock astutely waved the action over. 

Espinoza, perhaps, is yet to truly be given the credit he deserves for his two victories over Cuba’s Robeisy Ramirez, the first of which started his reign as champion. 

He and his confidante Marco Antonio Barrera have spoken of their desire for him to fight Naoya Inoue – a fight that may given him that nature of credit and that, in the event of Inoue’s expected move up to 126lbs, may even prove the Japanese icon’s greatest test.